Candidates for job shouldn't be limited to white males, says outgoing David Anderson.

David Anderson QC has confirmed that he will quit his job as the UK government's independent reviewer of terrorism legislation in early 2017—a period of time when the Investigatory Powers Act (if passed) will be in its infancy.

"I have notified the home secretary that I do not intend to ask for a third three-year term as Independent Reviewer after the expiry of my current term in February 2017," Anderson wrote in a blog post on Thursday evening.

The hunt for a replacement will begin shortly. Anderson's decision to stand down from the role prompted a number of privacy campaigners—who have tirelessly lobbied against home secretary Theresa May's Investigatory Powers Bill—to tweet about his departure. "@terrorwatchdog has done an ASTONISHING job. V big shoes to fill," said infosec expert Professor Ian Brown.

Anderson, who also announced that he now has three new special advisers working with him, added:

I have found the job immensely rewarding. But I will soon have submitted some 20 reports over six years, not to mention 5,000 tweets, and expressed my opinions on the terrorism laws (and allied subjects) countless times to parliamentary committees and to media.

I believe that from early next year (by which time I aim to have published four further reports), the value I can bring to the role will begin to decline, and that it will be time for a new incumbent with a new set of skills.

Anderson called for a good range of candidates "not limited to white males" to apply for the job. Since February 2011 when Anderson's tenure as the UK's terror watchdog begun, May has attempted several times to bring in legislation that would massively ramp up surveillance of Brits' online activity.

Further Reading

He was also tasked, in 2014, with leading an independent review of the capabilities and powers required by police and spooks, and the regulatory framework within which that law should be exercised, in light of the fast-tracked Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act. DRIPA has a sunset clause that expires at the end of this year—a date which May has used to justify legislating the so-called Snoopers' Charter swiftly.

Most recently, Anderson said that May's Investigatory Powers Bill—which is currently at the committee stage in the House of Commons, having passed its second reading in parliament last month—"gets the most important things right," adding that "by providing that no one’s communications can be intercepted without the approval of a judge, the Bill goes a long way to meet the cynics who see its vital powers as ripe for governmental abuse."

One thing is certain: whomever it is who takes up the terror watchdog post next, there will be interesting, and challenging times ahead.